Reagent managers of diagnostic analyzer systems supply reagents to the diagnostic analyzer system for testing of samples. The reagents are typically shipped in reagent bottles. Upon arrival the reagent bottles may need to be manually prepared for insertion into the reagent manager. The manual preparation often involves a user flipping the reagent bottles between upside-down positions and right-side up positions a large number of times over a significant amount of time in order to remove microparticles which may be stuck on bottom surfaces of caps of the reagent bottles. Further, the manual preparation may involve replacing the caps of the reagent bottles with septum. Often the reagent bottles may have to be inserted into the reagent manager in a certain order. The manual preparation and the insertion of the reagent bottles into the reagent manager may take substantial time and effort. While the reagent manager is being loaded with new reagent bottles processing of the diagnostic analyzer system, using reagents in reagent bottles previously disposed within the reagent manager, may be temporarily stopped taking up time and decreasing throughput. Once the reagent bottles are disposed within the reagent manager, the reagent manager may not have a completely accurate method of tracking the reagent bottles. Moreover, the user may need to remain present after the reagent bottles have been inserted into the reagent manager in order to manually dispose of the reagent cartridges after they have been emptied by the reagent manager. All of this may take substantial time and effort on behalf of the user and may decrease through-put of the diagnostic analyzer system.
A reagent manager and method of operating a reagent manager is needed to overcome one or more of the issues of one or more of the existing diagnostic analyzer systems.